Avsnitt 55: Mötesplats: Är det alltid synd att prata om synd?

May 25, 2022

Hur kan vi skilja på destruktiva och konstruktiva sätt att tala om synd? Finns det något sätt att tala om synd som hjälper och inte stjälper mänsklig blomstring?

Detta är temat för föredraget som utgör dagens "Mötesplats". Talar gör NIkolaus Wandinger, professor i systematisk teologi vid Innsbrucks universitet.

Wandinger beskriver sitt föredrag så här:

Talk of “sin” is often seen as a dangerous element of an oppressive religious morality that is outdated – or on the contrary as belittlement of what should better be called criminal behavior.

As a dogmatic theologian, my view on sin is not so much on deeds that might be qualified as such but on the meaning of the concept itself: Is it really just the theological parallel to what one would call immoral acts? If so, shouldn’t we do without it?

In a sound Christian theology, “sin” is not so much a moral but a spiritual concept about our relation to God; and the even stranger looking idea of "original sin" is not meant to place an additional burden of guilt on believers but to interpret the difficulties we face in being faithful to our own moral standards.